Why the Hate for AD?

[Enry]

If you were on fbt the agent would demand £200 /ac rent to match AD rents

£200/acre is soo last year - word is a large dairy up the road from here has taken over 300ac at over £300/acre for a few years - potato and carrot men used to set the bar but they are having to up their game now

 

[som farmer]

£200/acre is soo last year - word is a large dairy up the road from here has taken over 300ac at over £300/acre for a few years - potato and carrot men used to set the bar but they are having to up their game now

good maize locally, £1250/ac standing, for feed, not AD
friend double crops h/rye and maize, for a digester, was £30t for rye, and £40 for maize, get it right, and 30-ton ac is easily achievable, plus he gets digestate back. His very late maize doesn't look too good, perhaps 3t/ac, sown july. But his rye was fantastic.
and like he said, late maize is a gamble, sometimes win, and sometimes lose. His early june maize is fine.

 

[Enry]

good maize locally, £1250/ac standing, for feed, not AD
friend double crops h/rye and maize, for a digester, was £30t for rye, and £40 for maize, get it right, and 30-ton ac is easily achievable, plus he gets digestate back. His very late maize doesn't look too good, perhaps 3t/ac, sown july. But his rye was fantastic.
and like he said, late maize is a gamble, sometimes win, and sometimes lose. His early june maize is fine.

15t potential crops here seem to be £800 ish, poorer less, mate further south bought some for £450 but it did 9t so same ball park if your £1250 did 20t with good quality I guess

 

[Enry]

good maize locally, £1250/ac standing, for feed, not AD
friend double crops h/rye and maize, for a digester, was £30t for rye, and £40 for maize, get it right, and 30-ton ac is easily achievable, plus he gets digestate back. His very late maize doesn't look too good, perhaps 3t/ac, sown july. But his rye was fantastic.
and like he said, late maize is a gamble, sometimes win, and sometimes lose. His early june maize is fine.

How many tons here do you reckon? Nice new harvester having an easy time in Cheshire - looks plenty green enough to me !

 

[d williams]

How many tons here do you reckon? Nice new harvester having an easy time in Cheshire - looks plenty green enough to me !

View attachment 1065606View attachment 1065606

8 ton ac

 

[som farmer]

8 ton
follow a dairy farmer from USA, pretty well up to date, nice modern set up etc,
cutting his maize this week, and was surprised to see him describe as a 'good' crop, it was the same height, as the forager, 14/16 ft tall, over here, we look at feed value, more so than bulk.

But for many, shortage of the bulk this year, is an expensive commodity.

Watched another d/farmer, making hay, from sudan grass, 8 ft tall, same farmer had ensiled sudan grass, 8 ft high, nearly 700 acres.

sometimes l think we are missing a trick, with bulk yield, more so for fodder, than digestor, its easier to increase the feed value of bulk, but expensive to buy bulk.

 

[Enry]

8 ton
follow a dairy farmer from USA, pretty well up to date, nice modern set up etc,
cutting his maize this week, and was surprised to see him describe as a 'good' crop, it was the same height, as the forager, 14/16 ft tall, over here, we look at feed value, more so than bulk.

But for many, shortage of the bulk this year, is an expensive commodity.

Watched another d/farmer, making hay, from sudan grass, 8 ft tall, same farmer had ensiled sudan grass, 8 ft high, nearly 700 acres.

sometimes l think we are missing a trick, with bulk yield, more so for fodder, than digestor, its easier to increase the feed value of bulk, but expensive to buy bulk.

Best maize around here can do 20t plus with good quality most years but most will be below 17t this year by my estimation. Some droughted crops have been done with reports of 10-14t but high dm

 

[som farmer]

Best maize around here can do 20t plus with good quality most years but most will be below 17t this year by my estimation. Some droughted crops have been done with reports of 10-14t but high dm

our maize has done well, this year, it's going to be 15+ for certain.
But, against many opinions, it shouldn't be. We are a very dry farm, and our maize was drilled, mid may, against usual custom. We find it tends to grow like fury, sown later, without any weather check, it is that rapid growth, that allows quick ground cover, which then retains the moisture.

Compared to many local crops, ours is fantastic. A lot looks awful, and some, not worth harvesting, and a lot has been cut, because it is dead. We do tend to grow types more suited to eastern Europe, Polish ones, they need to be both hardier, quicker growing, and earlier ripening, which their climate dictates. All of which, suit us, we can double crop with them, with a 'bigger' window.

 

[Chae1]

But.

Why the hate for AD?

 

[som farmer]

they pay for it, we grow it for the money, it's no difference, is it ?

 

[d williams]

Best maize around here can do 20t plus with good quality most years but most will be below 17t this year by my estimation. Some droughted crops have been done with reports of 10-14t but high dm

You want a very good crop to average 20/ ton a ac I’ve not seen any this year

 

[som farmer]

You want a very good crop to average 20/ ton a ac I’ve not seen any this year

no, have got to 18, but that's a hell of a crop.
but reckon we used to, 12/14 ft crops were pretty normal for the 70/80's, and the yield, and bulk were there. Then importance shifted from total yield to feed value, and crops became a lot shorter, but with higher feed value, less stalk/leaf ration, to grain yield.
We started growing it for reliable bulk yield, on very dry soil, and it was brilliant. But bulk was exchanged for quality. Would like to have both.

 

[DaveGrohl]

You want a very good crop to average 20/ ton a ac I’ve not seen any this year

Just grow hybrid rye. We’re consistently getting 20t+ per acre. Different crop but lots grown for digesters.

 

[sjt01]

Just grow hybrid rye. We’re consistently getting 20t+ per acre. Different crop but lots grown for digesters.

Our digester gets upset if we feed more than 15-20% rye, so not worth doing. We are now putting in some lucerne, in a similar proportion, out of the cows' lucerne clamp. It is the lowest carbon footprint crop we grow, just got a superb 4th cut last week and it is recovering well (now coming up to its 6th year)

 

[Enry]

You want a very good crop to average 20/ ton a ac I’ve not seen any this year

Nor me…..as I said most will be 17 or less,